IRCC Wait Times Ease for Temporary Residence Applicants

Canada’s immigration department has updated its processing time estimates for several temporary residence applications, showing mostly stable wait times and some clear improvements.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, known as IRCC, released the latest figures on June 3. The update compares current estimates with the previous figures published on May 26.

The biggest changes include shorter work permit wait times for applicants from India and the United States, a slight increase for India-based study permit applicants, and a 10-day improvement for super visa applicants from the U.S.

Work Permit Waits Improve

Work permit processing times either improved or stayed the same across the listed countries.

For applications from inside Canada, the estimated wait time dropped from 201 days to 195 days. Applicants from India now face a nine-week wait, down from 10 weeks. U.S. applicants saw processing times fall from five weeks to four weeks.

Wait times remained unchanged for Pakistan at six weeks, Nigeria at 16 weeks, and the Philippines at eight weeks.

IRCC’s service standard for work permits is 120 days for applications made inside Canada, including initial applications and extensions. For applications made outside Canada, the service standard is 60 days.

Study Permit Times Mostly Stable

Study permit processing remained steady in most listed countries, except India.

Applicants from India now have an estimated wait time of five weeks, up from four weeks on May 26. Inside Canada applications remain for six weeks.

Processing times also stayed unchanged for Pakistan at seven weeks, Nigeria at six weeks, the United States at five weeks, and the Philippines at four weeks.

For study permits, IRCC’s service standard is 120 days for applications made inside Canada, including initial applications and extensions. For outside Canada applications, the service standard is 60 days.

Visitor Visa Changes Remain Small

Visitor visa processing times changed only slightly.

Applications from inside Canada increased from 25 days to 28 days. India remained unchanged at 28 days, while Pakistan improved slightly from 49 days to 47 days.

Nigeria stayed at 48 days, and the United States remained at 26 days. The Philippines saw a small improvement, dropping from 21 days to 20 days.

IRCC does not list a service standard for visitor visa applications made inside Canada. For applications made outside Canada, the service standard is 14 days.

Super Visa Processing Gets Faster

Super visa applicants saw broader improvements across most listed countries. Super visas are available for parents and grandparents of Canadian citizens or permanent residents and cannot be applied for from inside Canada.

India’s processing time improved from 116 days to 112 days. Pakistan dropped from 74 days to 70 days. Nigeria moved from 36 days to 35 days.

The largest change came for applicants from the United States, where the wait time dropped from 106 days to 96 days. The Philippines remained unchanged at 33 days.

IRCC’s service standard for super visas is 112 days.

Estimates Are Not Guarantees

IRCC processing times are meant to give applicants a general idea of how long an application may take. They do not guarantee when a final decision will be made.

Actual wait times can vary depending on whether the application is complete, how complex the file is, and whether IRCC needs more documents or clarification.

IRCC uses both past processing results and current application volumes to create these estimates. Service standards are different. They are internal targets showing how quickly IRCC aims to complete most applications under normal conditions.

Processing times are updated regularly, while service standards are reviewed less often. Temporary residence service standards were last updated in 2018–2019.